Researchers are continually planting both rice breeds in different areas to experiment with outstanding traits of the crops. For example, if you grow rice in a cool area, the harvest will be of darker colour. But if you grow it in an area with a certain suitable condition like in the northeast, then the rice have a more hearty aroma," Dr Soottiporn said.
So far, experimentation with planting both the Rice Berry and Sinlek varieties has succeeded in all regions of Thailand. The two types of rice are found to be resistant to drought, floods, and the rice blast disease, one of the world's most destructive rice diseases that can strike all aerial parts of the plant.
However, as there is still only a limited amount of seed available for the new rice varieties, so only farmers in the central part of the country have been given seeds for their own rice planting. Thailand’s Rice Science Center together with Agriculture Department are jointly continuing to interbreed to produce more seedstock.
As the main food in Thailand is rice, the discovery of the specialised rice genes will help add value to Thai rice and benefits to health-conscious rice consumers. (TNA)